City of Tshwane Apprenticeship Programme at TLMA

Written by Thabo MokoenaSenior Education Editor

Reviewed & verified by Naledi KhumaloSenior Admissions and Bursaries EditorVerified

The City of Tshwane trains its own artisans. Its Tshwane Leadership and Management Academy (TLMA), run by the Learning and Development Division in Group Human Capital Management, takes unemployed young people from across the metro into a three-year apprenticeship in trades the municipality needs to keep water, electricity and vehicles running. The City describes it as the largest fully accredited artisan training programme in the country, with more than 3,000 artisans trained since 2000.

There was no open call on 27 September 2026. The last public advert on tshwane.gov.za was for the 2024 intake, and the City has not published dates for the next one.

Seven trades at the Tshwane Leadership and Management Academy

When 85 apprentices qualified on 8 September 2026, they came from seven trades: diesel mechanic, motor mechanic, electrical, welding, fitting and turning, plumbing and boilermaking. The 2024 advert showed how the seats were split across the trades:

That adds up to 120, which matches the annual intake the City reported in September 2024, when it had between 300 and 360 apprentices in training at once. Plumbing is about to grow: at the September 2026 graduation the City opened an upgraded R18 million plumbing workshop at TLMA and said it will double the annual plumbing intake from 15 to 30. It also plans to add trades linked to the City’s mandate and to offer short technical courses in electrical work, plumbing, welding and motor mechanics.

Three years, nine months of it in the regions

The programme is registered with the Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO) at NQF level 4. It mixes theory, workshop practice and supervised workplace learning, including nine months of practical work in Tshwane’s regions. Apprentices receive a stipend to help with training and transport costs; the 2024 advert set it at R2,792.44 a month, and the City says the stipend increases during the programme. It has not published a current figure.

The group welcomed in June 2024 was 114 young people aged between 20 and 25. The City has not published an age limit as a rule, but the Director of Competency Development and Training said at the 2026 graduation that the academy recruits unemployed youth “from the poorest of the poor” across all regions of the city.

Entry requirements the 2024 call set

• At least an N2, an NCV Level 4 or a technical matric, with Mathematics, Science and relevant trade theory.
• A genuine interest in becoming an artisan.
• Proof of residence certified by the ward councillor, or a recent water and lights account, which in practice limits the programme to Tshwane residents.

The advert gave preference to previously disadvantaged applicants and women, and promised reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities where the trade’s physical requirements allow it. For candidates with disabilities who fall short of the entry requirements, TLMA piloted a bridging programme; 33 learners were enrolled in it in September 2024, with the aim of qualifying them for the apprenticeship.

After qualifying as an artisan

Qualifying does not guarantee a municipal job, but the City has built routes towards one. Under its Artisan Training and Retention Policy, TLMA’s Work-integrated Learning Programme places qualified artisans in service delivery departments according to their trade. In January 2025 the City reserved, for the first time, 30 of the 150 WIL seats for plumbers and electricians it had trained itself, deploying them across its seven regions on a stipend set in line with the National Minimum Wage Act. The City said plainly that these contracts do not promise permanent posts, and artisans who want permanent work must apply through its e-recruitment system.

How the last call worked

The 2024 apprenticeship advert asked for a CV, a certified statement of results, certified copies of qualifications and the proof of residence, either hand-delivered to the Recruitment Walk-in Centre, Upper Ground Level, Middestad Building, 252 Thabo Sehume Street, Pretoria CBD, or posted to PO Box 440, Pretoria 0001. It closed at 12:00 on 7 February 2024, and applicants who heard nothing within three months were to treat their application as unsuccessful. The enquiry numbers listed were 012 358 7514, 012 358 4125 and 012 358 8740.

Future calls may use a different route. Watch the news section of tshwane.gov.za and the City’s Tshwane Careers portal, which had no apprentice posts on 27 September 2026. For the recent graduation and plumbing expansion, see the City’s report of 11 September 2026.

Students who want to fund a trade qualification at a TVET college meanwhile can look at the site’s hubs for plumbing, welding and electrician bursaries.

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